Outdated Film (?)

Okay, I am sure there are many, many variables involved but generally speaking, how long can film be effective past its expiration date?

For instance.. There is a 100 rolls of Portra for sale for like $150 dated 2001. Would this show signs of quality loss? I know slower is better but what else is there to consider? If its been fridged the whole time, is it still tip top?

if it has been stored normally with out the extremes of heat, and I mean pretty high heat, like in the 90's often, I would suspect you would really not notice to much of a problem with it, I am still shooting some print film from the mid 90's that is fine and does not exhibit color shift, it seems the past decade, that most print film has been very conservatively rated as to expiration dates.

Slower is better, and neg is better than slide, because you can correct small shifts at the print stage. It might not be such a bad deal if it's Portra 160. If it's Portra 400, I'd want a better price.

Can you get a roll to test? You don't say what format but for 120 I'd consider that expensive. Worse since you're buying 100 rolls. I've got similar film frozen and it's fine when I use it. But I won't pay $1.50 a roll sight unseen. It's what 2x that fresh single roll. Or you could buy Superia for less then $2 a roll. Fresh.

Only you can decide about the appropriate price. I generally agree with the information given in the posts above. If the film had been frozen I would have virtually no hesitation about using it; even if just stored in a refridgerator, it should still be fine, especially with the adjustments available at the printing step. If I had an immediate use for 100 rolls of 120 CN film at only $1.50 per roll, I'd consider it a very good, though not fantastic, deal. All this assumes, of course, that each roll is still in its factory-sealed packaging.

Put it this way. A few years ago I bought 100 rolls of 2-years out of date of Fuji RMS 120 that I'm just about done with at 50 cents a roll from Freestyle. Their stuff is cold stored and cheap. Before bidding, check freestylecamera.com and go to the clearance section.

Depending on your wants and desires, outdated slide film can be fun. Color shift isn't a bad thing if you're shooting artistic, edgy photography or are wanting to street shoot because it gives an interesting quality to the photo. Expired Velvia and Sensia are supposed to be really good. Heck, I've known some people who have actually left film out in the car in the heat for a while just to see what it would do.

As for buying a ton of it in one go, I'd say not. The Sensia/Velvia thing depends on the emulsion usually and you don't get constant good results. 10 rolls, maybe. 100...I'd be scared to spend that much money on film that may or may not be good.

I just finished off a box of 4x5 Velvia 50 that expired in May of '94. It must be some of the earliest RVP, as I don't think it came out much before that. I shot some RVP that expired in '99 at the same time. I couldn't see a difference in color between the two.